The programme in June

Dear visitors to Gessnerallee, dear artists

Just across the road from the Letzipark shopping centre lies the Baslerpark, which, with its 24,000 m², offers at least 240 workspaces available for rent. The website promises ‘Business as unusual’: airy stairwells, large lifts, modern sanitary facilities, 140 parking spaces in the underground car park, a fitness centre, an accessible roof terrace – everything is in place to make the working day a pleasant one.

Amidst this promise of creative productivity, the three artists Eulalie Déguénon, Noé Wetter and Lucia Salomé Gränicher have taken up residence and are rehearsing a farewell. In their site-specific, installation-based performance ‘Dry Down – Requiem for a Lost Room’ (12 to 16 June), they invite visitors to a final drinks reception in honour of the good old office. What happens to such a place when more and more people are moving to home offices or embracing digital nomadism? When the private sphere no longer encroaches on the workspace, but work permeates the private sphere?

The audience, together with the two actors and dancers Bea Nichele and Tejus Menon, as well as the musician Mira Hirtler, embarks on a journey through spaces of past bustle. Tickets

But that’s not all: in the final month of our season, you can look forward to two series of talks and five premieres, ranging from a site-specific work in the urban space, a poetic encounter between three speakers of endangered languages in the dark, an inclusive summer quiz night and a queer participatory personality test, to a series of talks with a disco.

Overview of the June programme

‘Data leaks with political explosive power and cross-border journalism’ by WOZ – ‘Die Wochenzeitung’

3 June, 7.30 pm

Tonight sees the final episode of the first season of the Gessnerallee’s ‘Monthly Topics’ discussion series, in collaboration with various editorial teams. This time, the guest is WOZ – ‘Die Wochenzeitung’. In the discussion, the editorial team will provide an insight into their research and how they deal with data leaks, and will discuss the advantages and challenges of international research collaborations. Tickets

‘Belonging, Loss and the Language of Art’ by artasfoundation

10 June, 5.30 pm

Artistic creation in crisis zones is confronted with challenging questions. In this series of talks, various practitioners come together to reflect on their experiences. This time with Vida Rucli (architect, cultural practitioner, Robida Collective) and Fazil On Yu (dancer, choreographer, activist and performance artist). Free admission. More information

‘Mutterzungen’ by Rebekka Bangerter in collaboration with Asa Hendry, Solange P. Molu, Felicia Touvenot

11 to 16 June

What is lost when a language disappears? An intimate, poetic encounter between three speakers of endangered languages in the dark. Tickets

‘Dry Down – Requiem for a Lost Room’ by Déguénon/Gränicher/Wetter

12 to 16 June

The office is dead, long live the office! An olfactory farewell ritual to a space that is hard to beat in its everydayness, yet shapes life and work stories in ways that are sometimes absurd. Tickets

‘The New Uncertainty’ by Fatima Moumouni

19 June, 8 pm

Here, uncertainty is not hidden: a format seeks the ‘um’, shares doubts – far removed from the eternal, annoying ‘WHAT ELSE IS ALLOWED? Tickets

‘INSIDE_OUT’ by Kian Amadeus H. and Sarah Calörtscher

19 and 20 June

A participatory personality test in the form of a game show about inside and outside, porous boundaries, decisions without wrong answers, and insights that symbolise personal growth. Tickets

‘An inclusive Summer Quiz Night’ by KAFi Q

20 June

To mark the end of the season, people with and without disabilities will gather at KAFi Q for a quiz night. There will be puzzles in the form of images and movements. A cocktail or snack is served in each round. And there are cool prizes to be won. Free entry. More information

Furthermore

Around the feminist strike on 14 June, the KIN Festival creates spaces for art, exchange and shared experiences. From 11 to 27 June 2026, the festival will showcase works by around 20 FLINTA artists at the Photobastei in Zurich and at many other venues across the city. There will also be a programme of talks, concerts, theatre, parties, readings and performances. Gessnerallee will present the works ‘INSIDE_OUT’ by Kian Amadeus H. and Sarah Calörtscher, ‘The New Uncertainty’ by Fatima Moumouni and ‘An inclusive Summer Quiz Night’ by KAFi Q as part of the KIN Festival. More information about the festival

We look forward to seeing you.

The Gessnerallee team